Orbital strip-cutting knife assembly



06f 10, 1961 J. R. uRscHEL ET AL 3,003,530

ORBITAL STRIP-CUTTING KNIFE ASSEMBLY Original Filed Jan. 24, 1955 States This invention relates to machines for cutting articles as potatoes into geometric pieces, and more particularly concerns an orbital knife assembly iadapted to cut slices or slabs of such articles into strips. This application is a division of our co-pending application titled Machine for Performing Intersecting Cuts in a Product to Sectionalize the Same, filed January 24, 1955 under Serial No. 483,616, now Patent No. 2,934,117 issued April 26, 1960.

An object of this invention is the provision of a novel stripcutting knife assembly operable to planetate the knives at high speed through an orbital path without rotating them about their individual principal axes, and independently of force received from the product being cut, to adapt the knives to penetrate the product during traverse of a portion of their orbit where the spacing between adjacent knives increases, to release the cut strips from the otherwise wedged relation between adjacent knives and facilitate discharge of the strips from between the knives. Driving the knives independently of force from the product avoids the product being bruised, particularly when the knives are to be orbited at high speed which would require considerable force from the product, and in fact more force than some products could withstand without crushing and frustrating operation of the knife assembly.

The above and other desirable objects inherent in and encompassed by the invention are elucidated in the insuing specification, the appended claims and the annexed drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a sectional view taken axially of and through a strip-cutting knife assembly constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged transverse sectional view through an end portion of the strip cutting knife assembly, taken at the plane indicated by the line 2-2 in FIG. l.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of an anchorage and driving element for one end of one of the strip cutting knives.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged perspective view of one of the strip cutting knives.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged perspective view of an anchorage bearing member for attachment to the other end of a strip cutting knife.

With continued reference. to the drawings, the strip cutting knives 34 are assembled about a non-rotatable rod 44 having end portions extending between and respectively carried in semi-cylindrical notches 153 in the lower sides of supporting frame bearing plates 96. Pillow blocks 154 respectively secured to the lower edges of the bearing plates 196 by cap screws (not shown) contain semi-circular notches 156 complemental with the semicircular notches 153 for encircling and gripping onto the end portions of the rod 44. A set screw 157 in one of the pillow blocks 154, FIG. 1, extends into a transverse bore in rod 44 to positively constrain it from rotating.

A knife carrier 150 disposed rotatively upon the rod 44 comprises a tubular member 158 coaxial with the shaft 44 and having enlarged diameter cylindrical end portions 159 and 161 which contain annular bearing blocks 162 and 163. Bearing block 163 is held within the enlargement 161 by a disc-like cap 164 secured tov such enlargement by a circle of cap screws 165 of which one is shown in FIG. 12 A gear pinion l166 is securedto the cap 164 by arent a plurality of cap screws 167 of which one is shown in FIG. 1. This pinion is jonrnalled upon the rod 44 by a bushing 168.

- Bearing block 163 contains a circle of axial bearings 169 extending axially therethrough and spaced equidistantly circumferentially thereabout. These bearings 169 are equal in number to the number of knives 34, and each bearing contains a cylindrical knife anchorage element 171, FIGS. 1 and 5. A fiat face 172 on each anchorage element is adapted to engage flatly against an end portion of a knife 34 associated therewith and connected thereto by a pin 173 which extends through holes 174 and 175 therefore respectively in the lknife and the pin 171; see FIGS. 1, 4 and 5. The right ends of the anchorage pins 171 contain respective circumferential grooves 176 in which are inserted snap rings 177 to react against the right end of the bearing block 163 to prevent the pins 171 being pulled endwise from the bearings 169. It can also be seen in FIG. 1 that a radial wall portion 178 of the carrier tubular member 158 contains openings 179 respectively registering with the bearings 169 to facilitate projection of the anchorage pins 171 axially outwardly y through such radial wall portion.

The left ends of the knives 34, FIG. 1, are respectively held by anchorage elements or pins 181, also shown in FIG. 3, respectively disposed in bearings 182 in the bearing block 162 and respectively coaxial with the bearings 169 in the bearing block 163. A flattened side portion 183 of the anchorage pins 181 atly engage the knives associated therewith and secured thereto by pins 184 extending through transverse holes 185 in such anchorage pins and holes 186 in the left ends of the knives, FIGS. 3 and 4. Each anchorage pin 181 comprises a head 187 on its left end for reacting against the left end of the bearing block 162, FIG. l. In FIGS. 1 and 3 it can be ascertained that each anchorage pin 181 includes a crank bearing member 188 of which the principal axis is eccentric with the principal axis of the main body portion of the pin 181 and in parallelism therewith. These crank bearings 188 which are formed integrally with the pin heads 187 are disposed respectively in bearings 189 within and spaced equidistantly circumferentially about an orientation ring 191 'which is journalled upon a circular bearing member 192 mounted non-rotatively and eccentrically upon the iixed rod 44. A pin 193 extends diametrically through the eccentric bearing 192 and the rod 44 to maintain the direction of eccentricity of the bearing member in a vertical plane in coincident parallelism with the axis of the rod 44 and disposed upwardly with respect to such axis. In FIG. Zit can be ascertained that the axes a of the circle of bearings 189 are parallel with the axis a of the eccentric bearing 192 and are spaced radially therefrom equidistantly with the spacing of the carrier bearing axes a" from the axis a of the rod 44 and consequently of the knife carrier 150` which includes the tubular member 158. A lubricant-containing chamber 194 is formed within a cap 195, FIG. 1, which contains the orientation ring 191 and turns onto a threaded portion 196 of the carrier sleeve enlargement 159. A hole 197 in the cap 195 receives the rod 44 and forms a sliding sealing t thereagainst. y

p When the gear pinion 166 is rotated about the axis of the rod 44, this rotation is imparted to the knife carrier tube 158 through the screws 167, the cap 164 Iand screws 165. The knife anchorage pins 171 and 181 cause the bearing blocks 162 and 163 which constitute elements of the knife carrier structure 1150 to rotate with the tubular member 158. Thus, as thegear pinion 166 is rotated by a power-driven companion gear (not shown)` the knives 34 are revolved by the carried 150 therefor about the axis a of the rod 44. During such revolving motion of the knives 34 and the'anchorage pins 181 therefor with the 3,003,530 s f e carrier bearing block 162, the crank bearings 188 mounted on the anchorage pins 181 cooperate with such pins for constraining the orientation ring 191 to rotate synchronously with the knife carrier. As the orientation ring 1191 Vis thusrotated about the circular eccentric 192 such ring cooperates with` this eccentric and the, crank bearings [18S to constrain the knife anchorage pins or elements 181 against rotation about their individual axes. In this manner the-knife anchorage elements 181 are caused to rotate in the bearings 182, during rotation of the knife carrier 150'-, to maintain the thin bodies 42 of these knives vertical while they are being evolved about the axis a. With the bearing 192 disposedk eccentrically upwardly with respect to the carrier axis a as illustrated in FIG. 2, the orientation ring 191 and the crank bearings 18S `are operable pursuant to counter-clockwise rotation of the knife carrier 150 to cause the knife bodies 42 to descend, while maintained in an-upright position, successively into spaced sections of a slice or slab of cuttable material (not shown) being moved rightward as the knives descend thereinto for cutting the slice into strips in the manner explained in said application Ser. No. 483,616, now Patent Number 2,934,117.

Referring more in detail to the slender rectilinear knives 34, it can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 3 that these knives comprise a thin vertical body 42 with a lower cutting edge `43` extending lengthwise thereof. Each knife 34 has a flange 45 projecting transversely from its upper edge to form an included angle with the knife body 42 of slightly less than 90. This causes the flanges 45 to contact the upper sides of the cut strips with only a tip portion 46 thereof to avoid the upper faces of the strips having a broad area of contact with the undersides of the flanges 45 so that the juice-coated upper surface of the cut strips will have less tendency to adhere to the knives. This makes the knives more conducive to dis charging the cut strips which continue to move rightward in a horizontal path as the knives rise therefrom and from the 6 oclock position toward the 3 oclock position in FIG. 2. A slice guiding surface (not shown) extends horizontally adjacently beneath the knives as they descend orbitally from the 9 oclock position to the 6 oclock position to guide these slices rightward `and support them as the knives descend thereinto to cut them into strips. Adhesion between the trailing faces of the strips and the leadingfaces 48 of the knife bodies 42 is prevented by a plurality of protuberances 49, FIG. 4, upon these knife faces. The contacting edges 46 of the knife flanges 45 and the knife body protuberances 49 complement one another in making the knives readily discharge the strips.

Having described this single embodiment of the invention with the view of clearly and concisely illustrating the same, we claim:

1. In an assembly for orbitally moving a plurality of knives about an axis, a knife carrier rotatable about such axis, a plurality of bearings in said carrier spaced equidistantly radially from said axis and in parallelism therewith, knife yanchorage elements revolvable about said axis and respectively journalled in the carrier bearings, a hublessl orientation ring having an-inner cylindrical periphery constituting an inner bearing encircling said orbital axis of the knives, orientation bearing means contiguous with an end of the carrier to rotatively support said inner bearing of the ring and cooperable therewith for constraining the ring for rotation about its principal axis while maintaining such axis parallel with the first axis but eccentric with respect thereto, said ring having a plurality of crankreceiving bearings parallel with the eccentric axis and spaced therefrom equidistantly with the spacing of the carrier bearings from the carrier axis and having circumferential spacing about the eccentric axis corresponding to the circumferential spacing of the carrier bearings about thecarrier axis, means for constraining said carrier andthe, ring for synchronous rotation about their respective axes While constrainingthe knife anchorage elements against rotation about their individual axes, comprising crank bearings respectively fixed to the knife anchorage elements independently of the knives and journalled in the crank-receiving bearings of said ring, a cap mounted on said end of the carrier, said cap embracing the orientation ring and being cooperable therewith and with said endof the carrier to form an annular lubricant-containing chamber communicating with the carrier bearings, and drive means for the assembly comprising a gear constrained for rotation coaxially with the carrier.

2. ln an assembly for orbitally moving a knife carriersupporting bearing rod, a knife carrier journalled on the rod and having an axis substantially coaxial with the rod and about which the carrier is rotatable, a bearing in said carrier spaced radially from said axis and in parallelism therewith, a knife anchorage element revolvable about said axis and journalled in the carrier bearing, an orientation bearing on said rod contiguous with an end of the carrier and having a bearing surface encircling said rod and the carrier axis and having an axis parallel with the carrier axis but eccentric with respect thereto, a hubless orientation ring journalled upon the orientation bearing and having a crank-receiving bearing spaced radially from the eccentric axis equidistantly with the spacing O f the carrier bearing from the carrier axis, means for constraining said carrier and the ring for synchronous rotation about their respective axes while constraining the knife anchorage element against rotation about its individual axis in the carrier bearing, comprising a crank bearing fixed to such anchoragev element independently of the knife, said crank bearing being parallel with the carrier bearing and eccentric with respect to the axis thereof a distance equal to the eccentricity of the orientation bearing axis with respect to the carrier axis, said crank bearing being journalled in the crank-receiving bearing of the orientation ring, and a cap mounted on said end ofthe carrier, said cap embracing the orientation ring and being cooperable therewith and with said end of the carrier to form an annular lubricant-containing chamber communicative with the carrier bearings.

3. ln an assembly for orbitally moving knives, a bearing rod having a principal axis, a knife carrier journalled on said rod andV having an axis of rotation coincident with the rod axis, the carrier comprising bearing block end portions and a central tubular portion between the end portions and of less diameter than such end portions, each carrier end portion containing a plurality of anchorage-element-receiving bearings spaced radially of the carrier axis outwardly from the tubular portion of the carrier, the anchorage-element-receiving bearings being spaced apart circumferentially of the carrier axis, knife anchorage elements respectively journalled in the anchorage-element-receiving bearings and such elements at each carrier end portion being respectively axially aligned with such anchorage elements at the opposite carrier end portion, aplurality of slender knives mounted upon and extending between the axially aligned anchorage elements, the anchorage-element-receiving bearings and the anchorage elements therein being spaced radially from the carrier axis such a distance that the knives mounted on such elements lie nestled between said bearing block end portions in close proximity with the exterior of said tubular portion of the carrier, an orientation bearing on said rod adjacently to one of the carrier end portions and having a bearing surface encircling the carrier axis and having an axis parallel with the carrier axis but eccentric with respect thereto, a hubless orientation ring journalled on the orientation bearing and having a plurality of bearings spaced radially from the eccentric axis equidistantly with the spacing of the anchorage-elementreceiving bearings from thecarrier axis, means for constraining the carrier and ring for synchronous rotation about their respective axes while constraining the knife anchorageelements` and the knives against rotation about the individualaxes of such elements, comprising crank bearings respectively xed to the anchorage elements independently of the knives, the axes of said crank bearings being parallel With the axes of the anchorage-eiement-receiving bearings and eccentric with respect thereto a distance equal to the eccentricity of the orientation bearing axis with respect to the carrier axis, and the crank bearings being journalled in respective of the orien- 6 tation ring bearings, and drive means for rotating the carrier and orientation ring for orbitaliy moving the knives about the carrier axis, comprising a driving force receiving element constrained for rotation with the car- 5 rier.

No references cited. 

